A black and white banner hoisted in the chamber read in Chinese: “Bow to protect rule of law. Oppose extradition.”

China said Britain should "know its place and stop interfering" after the government pledged support.

This evening Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said on Twitter: "Want to stress UK support for Hong Kong and its freedoms is UNWAVERING.

"HK people MUST preserve right to peaceful protest exercised within the law, as hundreds of thousands of brave people showed today."

Away from campaigning want to stress UK support for Hong Kong and its freedoms is UNWAVERING on this anniversary day. No violence is acceptable but HK people MUST preserve right to peaceful protest exercised within the law, as hundreds of thousands of brave people showed today.

They also are demanding an independent inquiry into police actions during a June 12 protest.

"We used to think that police are protecting the citizens. But people are protesting peacefully. Citizens are scared," said 21-year-old student Tiffany Lau.

21

The intruders hid behind umbrellas inside the chamber for fear of reprisalCredit: AFP or licensors

21

Demonstrators eventually managed to smash their way inCredit: AFP or licensors

Protesters storm inside government building during the anniversary of Hong Kong's handover to China

"Carrie Lam still doesn't want to listen to citizens. I think the only solution is for her to step down."

Police officers used tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse protesters who blocked entry to the legislature on the day debate on the bill had been scheduled to resume.

Hong Kong has been a semi-autonomous region since 1997, when a 99-year lease held by Britain expired.

The city was returned to Chinese rule under a "one country, two systems" formula that allows freedoms not enjoyed in mainland China, including freedom of protest and a much-cherished independent judiciary.

Hong Kong handover

Hong Kong became a British colony with the end of the First Opium War in 1842.

The British fought the war to preserve the right of the East India Company to sell opium into mainland China.

The establishment of the colony gave Britain control over a number of ports to which foreign merchants could deliver goods.

Britain obtained a 99-year lease for the territory in 1898, and relinquished control when that lease expired in 1997.

Hong Kong now operates as a semi-autonomous territory, with control over its own trade, tax, and immigration policy.

Under the terms of the 1997 handover, that status is protected until 2047.

What happens after then is currently undecided, but opponents of the Beijing government fear that China will seek to gain control of the territory.

But it has been plunged into turmoil over a proposed law that would allow extradition to mainland China.

Authorities in the territory have sought to suppress opposition to the proposed law, which critics say would erode Hong Kong’s judicial independence.

The new bill would create a system for case-by-case fugitive transfers between Hong Kong and China.

The Hong Kong government says the bill is a necessary step in its fight against crime, and that China is an important strategic partner.

But opponents fear that it would not resist politically-motivated requests by China.

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Fears were bolstered last month when a member of China’s politburo, the ruling body of the Communist Party, revealed that the country’s targets included foreigners who had committed crimes against Chinese national security outside China.

The embattled leader of Hong Kong pledged to be more responsive to public sentiment in a speech at a flag-raising ceremony.

"This has made me fully realize that I, as a politician, have to remind myself all the time of the need to grasp public sentiments accurately," she said.

Hong Kong riots - Protesters use trolley to smash into government building on 22nd anniversary of its handover from UK to Chinese rule

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